Maddison Farris & Caelin Bragg
Lantern Staff
Butler Graduate and U.S. Representative for Kansas’ 1st Congressional District, Roger Marshall, toured the El Dorado campus and met with President Kim Krull to discuss the college’s development and welfare on Friday, Sept. 6.
Rep. Marshall attended Butler Community College from 1978-80 and graduated with an associate of science. He went on to attend Kansas State University to earn his bachelor’s in biochemistry and then proceeded to University of Kansas to receive his doctorate of medicine in 1987. Rep. Marshall ran for and was elected as U.S. representative in 2016 and won re-election in 2018.
“Everything I needed to learn in life, I learned right here in El Dorado,” Rep. Marshall said during his visit. “From Jefferson Grade School to El Dorado High School to Butler County Community College, my teachers, my coaches, my family, they are my inspiration. They are the ones who taught me all the values that are important in my life: faith, family, community, hard work [and] backbone.”
Rep. Marshall entertained a light, cheerful spirit throughout his visit and enjoyed speaking with many students and faculty members. He said he is very proud to be a former Grizzly. During his visit, he wanted to encourage students not to be embarrassed about going to a small college and insisted that Butler is well respected and offers solid, valuable education.
During his visit, Rep. Marshall was happy to share that he would be running for state senator during the 2020 elections, which he officially announced the following day at the 2019 Kansas State Fair on Saturday, Sept. 7. Rep. Marshall hopes to petition that pell grants can be utilized for “non-traditional programs at non-traditional times,” such as certificate programs that take place during the summer.
“This is why I am going to run for senator,” he said.
Using the tortoise and the hare analogy, Rep. Marshall expressed that going slow and steady is nothing to be ashamed of.
“The people that can hang in there, and have this lifetime of learning, are the ones that are gonna win the race, that education is the great equalizer in life,” Rep. Marshall said. “I was a fifth-generation farm kid, a first-generation college student, and education allowed me to fulfill my dream of being a physician. I got to deliver over 5,000 babies, just an incredible experience, and that education all started here.”
Rep. Marshall values the importance of education and encourages college students never to underestimate themselves and to go out and do hard things.
“Don’t ever short sell yourself,” Rep. Marshall said. “Don’t ever be embarrassed to say that ‘I am a Butler County Community College graduate.’”